THE latter part of the 19th century saw the introduction of the 1889 Grimsby Borough Extension Act.

This effectively extended the town boundary from Humber Street, where in 1861 just a few terrace houses stood across the road from the original Humber Hotel.

This new area would be known as New Clee, with fine, middle-class terrace villas built along both sides of Cleethorpe Road. These had names such as Albert, Alexandra, Humber, Sunderland, Trinity and Victoria Terrace.

To serve this new community, Hilda Street School opened in about 1878 and St John's Church was established in 1879. A new railway station (New Clee) had opened in 1875.

A large new Post and Telegraph office opened on the corner of Mangle Street and Cleethorpe Road. This was owned by Christmas White, who became a local councillor and chairman of the Parks Committee. Next door was the Primitive Methodist Ebenezer Chapel and Sunday School.

The Clee Hotel was built on the corner of Trinity Street and was managed by the Rowson family for many years, being known as "Daddy Rowson's".

New electric trams arrived in 1887, serving all New Clee and the Clee Park Gardens and football ground, laid out just across the new town boundary at Park Street. A large Tramway Depot was also built on Hamilton and Park Street corner.

In 1886, the first row of fine terrace houses were built on Sidney Sussex College land, stretching eastwards from Park Street along Grimsby Road into what became known as new Cleethorpes.

This was the start of mass house building facilitated by the colleges land agent, local solicitor Mr WH Daubney. To ensure their new estate was a pleasant and decent place to live, the college included strict covenants in its leases, forbidding nuisances such as slaughterhouses, fish curing houses, beer shops, etc.

The local board of health also imposed strict building regulations on the construction of all new houses, with action being taken against local builders George Doughty and Wilkinson & Houghton for flouting the regulations.

The impressive Clee Park Hotel was built in 1890 on a prime corner site. It wouldn't be long before the adjacent Clee Park Gardens and football ground would be swept away as their leases expired in 1889 and from Park Street to Manchester Street, both sides of Grimsby Road would be rapidly developed as a suburb with orderly streets of terrace houses for Grimsby's workers.

By 1895, New Cleethorpes contained a third of the resort's ratepayers. The tramway was further extended to Poplar Road, where a Tramway depot was built to maintain the growing fleet of electric trams. A new electricity generating station was built in Pelham Road.

In 1898, the steep gradient of Isaac's Hill was reduced to enable trams to climb it and reach the seafront terminus at Albert Road. That same year, 12 acres of land were donated by Sidney Sussex College to build Sidney Park for the enjoyment of the inhabitants of the new suburb.

In 1899, Blundell Park football ground and the adjacent Imperial Hotel were built. In 1919, Sidney Sussex College offered 14 acres of land in the Brereton Avenue area for a new recreation ground named Sussex Recreation ground.

Most of the street names of New Cleethorpes reflected the personnel (past and present) of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, who had purchased the land in the 17th century. Blundell Street (later Avenue) was named after Peter Blundell, of Tiverton, a rich merchant who helped establish Sidney Sussex College and his own College, Blundells in Tiverton.

Phelps Street is named in honour of Dr Robert Phelps, Master of Sidney Sussex College from 1843 to 1890. Manchester Street was named in honour of Edward Montagu (1602-1671), Earl of Manchester and brother of Dr James Montagu, the first Master of the College to whom Motague Street can be attributed.

Today, due mainly to road widening, the New Clee area has changed dramatically, with all of the terraced villas on the south side of Cleethorpe Road and St John's Church being demolished. The original post office owned by Christmas White's son, Lesley, and the adjacent Ebenezer Chapel were demolished in 1968-69 and Grimsby's first Asda supermarket was built on the site.

New Cleethorpes is virtually unchanged, with Sidney Park and the Sussex Recreation Ground remaining as intended – open spaces for the local community to enjoy.